INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
Sociology 222
Professor Clovis White
Office: 301-A King Bldg
Telephone: 775-8374
Office hours: Tues/Thurs 9-11 am
Or by appointment
Email: clovis.white@oberlin.edu
Spring Semester 2006
Meets: M-W-F 1000-1050am
Room Wilder 101
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Social psychology is an area of study within sociology, which examines the relationship between
the individual and society. Emphasis is placed the scientific study of the social behavior and
experiences stemming from individual's participation in social groups, interaction with others,
and the effects of the cultural environment and social structures on the individual. Topics in
social psychology include theories in social psychology, socialization, self and identity, attitudes
and attitude change, social perception, language, social communication and group processes.
COURSE GOALS:
Goal 1: Developing a Social Psychological perspective: In contrast to our personal view of the
social world, the course seeks to broaden our understanding of the dynamics associated
with social behavior. In doing so, students will be challenged to develop a “social science
perspective” to explain and analyze social relations and behavior.
Goal 2: Understanding and Utilizing Theoretical Approaches: The goal here is for students to
explore, gain an understanding and appreciation for the various social psychological
theories (explanations) and their critiques developed around human behavior and their
applications in social research.
Goal 3: Explore social psychology in practice and application: Just as students must engage in
explanations for social behavior, students must also engage in the research of social
psychology by participation in the research process and identifying an issue of interest
and explore the available social psychological research.
Goal 4: Developing Information Literacy: Students will develop knowledge of the available
resources important to the examination of social behavior.
Goal 5: Developing Skills to Write Critically: In this course students will be encouraged to
think and write critically.
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COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Class participation/Group Discussions: Attendance and participation in class discussions on a
regular basis is expected. Attendance will be taken every class. You are allowed two unexcused
absences. More absences will lower participation grade. Generally, a portion of a session will be
devoted to discussion examining issues or topics related to the unit under study. Some
discussions will be based on the readings assigned or may include some issue that has occurred
recently. A few of these discussions will involve the viewing of a film/video related to the topic
under consideration. Such discussions are geared toward developing critical thinking and
knowledge building. Class participation is worth 10% of your final grade.
Course materials and readings: There will be assigned readings from the books listed below
and books/photocopies on BlackBoard. Readings for a specific section/week are listed in the
lecture/topic section of the syllabus (see pp. 4-7).
Required books for the course:
1.
2.
3.
H. Andrew Michener and John D. Delameter and Daniel Myers. Social Psychology New
York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 2004 (5th edition).
Spencer E. Cahill. Inside Social Life: Readings in Sociological Psychology and
Microsociology. Los Angeles: Roxbury Publishing Company, 2004 (4th Edition).
Anna J. Michener. Becoming Anna: The Autobiography of a Sixteen Year Old,
Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press, 1998.
Exercises: Each student will be responsible for completing a series of exercises during the
semester. For the most part each of these exercises will involve the application of experiential
activities and/or library research within the social psychological realm. Others will be more
experiential in focus. But most importantly these exercises are designed to inform and/or address
the goals of this class, primarily developing research skills, information literacy, and analytical
and critical skills in the study of social behavior. General content of the exercises will be as
follows:

Exploring research questions, topics and reviews of topic related literature.

Examination of self, attitudes and perceptions of others

Review and evaluation (critiquing) social psychological research

Observing social behavior and analysis
Details instructions for these exercises will be distributed in the near future. For each of these
exercises, students will be asked to write a 2-5 page paper. All the exercises must be completed.
This is 25% of your final grade. Tentative due dates for the exercises are as follows:
#1
#2
#3
Friday, February 17
Friday, February 24
Friday, March 10
#4
#5
Friday, April 7
Friday, April 21
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Writing Assignment: The purpose of this project is to get you involved in the critical
examination of life circumstances or a social issue that you feel “passionately” about and has
social psychological significance incorporating the general skills that you have acquired from the
prior exercises. For example, an issue of importance in American society is the nature of racial
and ethnic attitudes and their impact on intergroup conflict within and across groups and
societies. Social psychologists, however, disagree as to the importance of racial attitudes in
contributing to intergroup conflict. Some argue that “prejudice” is the primary cause of
intergroup conflict while others contend racial and ethnic attitudes have little to with intergroup
conflict. BEFORE YOU BEGIN THIS YOUR RESEARCH, IT IS HIGHLY
RECOMMENDED THAT YOU COME AND SPEAK WITH ME ON THIS TOPIC
Based upon your experiences, the readings and any other resources at your disposal you will be
asked to explore the following:
(1) Describe the issue that you wish to explore and why you wish to do so (e.g., prejudice
towards minority groups because I feel that it contributes to racial conflict in America and I
have been an object racial epitaphs).
(2) Question(s) Propose or formulate a question or questions that you specifically wish to
examine (What is the role of racial attitudes in intergroup conflict? Are they the primary
cause of racial conflict? Or are there other important contributors?)
(3) Explore and review what the social psychological literature has to say about this topic. This
requires a review of the relevant past research on the topic (e.g., there are those who say it
contributes significantly and those who argue that it is a mere consequence of competition
for resources. Describe the evidence that does and/or does not support each of these
positions).
(4) Based on the review of the literature, develop an hypothesis and generate a methodological
plan to collect data on this issue (e.g., are you going to send a survey out, and if so what
types of variables would you tap into? Would do an experiment?
(5) Finally, come to your own conclusions on the nature of the problem you explored and
propose where future research should take us in looking at this phenomenon.
The paper should be at least 10 pages in length and double-spaced. The paper is DUE
FRIDAY, MAY 13TH. Late papers will be graded accordingly (a letter grade will be deducted
for everyday the paper is late). Papers must have appropriate citing within text and on the
reference page (For more details see handout to be distributed the Quick Style Guide For
Writing Sociology Papers on pages 9-11).
Exams: There will be TWO TAKE HOME essay examinations. Each exam will consist of
short answer questions and essay questions requiring the integration of materials covered in the
readings, lectures, and discussions. Each exam will be worth 25% of your final grade. The
second exam is NOT cumulative and will be held during the examination period. The dates for
the exams are as follows:
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EXAM 1 DUE:
FRIDAY, MARCH 12 BY 4:00 P.M.
EXAM 2 DUE:
FRIDAY, MAY 19 BY 12:00 P.M.
Honor Code: On all exams and exercises, you are expected to follow the guidelines as
established by the Oberlin College Honor System.
(http://www.oberlin.edu/students/student_pages/honor_code.html)
As such, you are required to follow the letter of that code and write and sign at the end of each
academic exercise submitted for credit the following: “I affirm that I have adhered to the Honor
Code in this exam/assignment”. The default of this statement is that you are required to do your
own work without the help from others not explicitly authorized by me (You may, however, use
campus resources, such as the library, composition instructors, or writing tutors)
Grading Summary:
Two Exams (25% each)
50%
5 Exercises (5% @)
25%
Research Paper/Essay
15%
Class Participation
10%
-----------------------------------------------------------Total
100%
Format: Many class sessions will consist of a lecture and discussion on topics related to sections
assigned from the text book and related readings. In general, we shall begin a new unit each
week; you will benefit most from lectures if you do the readings early in the week they are
assigned. On a given day of discussion you may be divided up into several small discussion
groups. Other times discussion will involve the entire class.
LECTURES, TOPICS AND ASSIGNED READINGS
(BB = reading is on Blackboard)
* If you have not accessed Blackboard before, please follow these steps:
1. Go to the Oberlin On-Line homepage: http://www.oberlin.edu/
2. Locate "QuickLinks" on left hand side of your screen.
3. Click on "QuickLinks" and select "Blackboard? from list of link
options.
4. In Blackboard, on left side of screen, select “Login”.
5. Your login name is the same as the one you use to login for email -- enter your login name and precede to the next
section.
6. To create your password, click on the link below login section marked
” Forgot your password?” and follow instructions.
7. To access the class readings and other materials, you will be presented with a “Course Catalog” page.
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8. Scroll down to the section for “Sociology” and left click on this.
9. On the next screen scroll down to the course “Introduction to Social Psychology” and left click on this.
10. To the left of your screen a number of options will appear. Left click “Documents”; this will take you to the list
of readings for the course. Select as needed.
If you have trouble using the Blackboard site, please email octet@oberlin.edu or call Albert Borroni at x58345.
INTRODUCTION
WEEK 1
February 6, 8, 10: Introduction to Social Psychology: What is Social
Psychology and what is its origin? Culture and Social
Psychology
Text Readings:
1.
H. Andrew Michener et al., Social Psychology, Chapter 1
2.
S. Cahill, Inside Social Life, pp. ix-x, Chapter 2
3.
Joel M. Charon, Symbolic Interactionism, "The Nature of Perspective", pp.
1-12, "The Perspective of Social Science", pp. 13-26. (BB)
WEEK 2
February 13, 15, 17: Theories of Social Psychology & Research Methods
(Perspectives and Research Process)
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 2
2.
S. Cahill, Chapter 3, Chapter 28
3.
Joel Charon, Symbolic Interactionism, Chapts. 3-5 and Chapter 13 (BB)
EXERCISE 1 DUE: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 17
SOCIALIZATION AND THE SELF
WEEK 3
February 20, 22, 24:
Socialization: How is it that we become functional
members of society?
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 3
2.
S. Cahill, Chapter 6
3.
Anna Michener, Becoming Anna, all
EXERCISE 1 DUE: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 17
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WEEK 4
February 27, March 1, 3: Self and Identities: Who am I?
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 4
2.
Lavaglia, Chapter 3
3.
S. Cahill, Chapts. 4-6, Chapts. 12-13
4.
Joel Charon, Chapter 6, “The Nature of the Self” (BB)
SOCIAL INTERACTION
WEEK 5
March 6, 8, 10: Social Interaction, Social Perception and Attribution: How
we see others.
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 5
2.
S. Cahill, Chapts. 9, 17, 30
EXERCISE 3 DUE: FRIDAY, MARCH 10
WEEK 6
March 13, 15, 17: Attitudes and Attitude Change
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 6
EXAM 1 DUE FRIDAY, MARCH 17
WEEK 7
March 20, 22, 24: Attitudes: Stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination:
Text Readings:
1. Sharon Brehm, et al., “Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination”, pp. 132183 (BB)
2. Video/Film: To Be Announced
WEEK 8
March 25-April 2nd: SPRING BREAK
WEEK 9
April 3, 5, 7: Social Influence and Persuasion
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 8, 9
2.
Alan Elms, “Obedience in Retrospect" (BB)
3.
Video/Film: To be Announced
EXERCISE 4 DUE: FRIDAY, APRIL 7
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WEEK 10
April 10, 12, 14: Symbolic Communication and Language
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 7
2.
S. Cahill, Chapts. 8, 19
3.
Video/Film: To Be Announced
SOCIETY AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR
WEEK 11
April 17,19,21: Group cohesiveness, conformity, structure and
interaction/Group Performance
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 13 –14
2.
Craig Haney et al., "A study of prisoners and guards in a simulated
prison", pp. 42-60 (BB)
3.
Video/Film To be announced
EXERCISE 4 DUE: FRIDAY, APRIL 21
WEEK 12
April 24, 26, 28: Intergroup Conflict
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 15
2.
Video/Film: To Be Announced
WEEK 13
May 1, 3, 5: Social Structure and Personality/
Text Readings:
1.
Michener et al., Chapter 17
2.
S. Cahill, Chapts., 24, 25, 33
WEEK 14
May 8, 10, 12: Wrap-up/Review
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT DUE FRIDAY,
MAY 12
WEEK 15
May 14-16: Reading Period
FRIDAY, MAY 19: TAKE HOME EXAM 2
DUE AT 12:00 PM
In King 305
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Quick
Style
Guide
A Quick Style Guide for Students Writing Sociology Papers
The following is taken from American Sociological Association Style Guide (2nd ed.), 1997.
Information on ordering this book can be found at the ASA Online Bookstore . This is intended as a
quick reference for students preparing papers.
References in the main text:
Include the last name of the author and the year of publication. In order to avoid plagiarism
(inappropriately using another person's words without proper citation), you must directly quote
verbatim, using quotation marks and the name, date, and page number in parentheses or you must
paraphrase and mention the source of the idea (name and date only).
Use page numbers only when you quote an author's words:
 Sociological analysis of cities is “critical to achieving far-reaching social change in this century,”
according to Duncan (1959, p. 71)
Otherwise, if the author's name is in the text, follow the name with the year in parentheses. If the
author's name is not in the text, enclose both the last name and year in parentheses:
 According to Duncan (1959), sociological analysis of cities is critical to creating positive social
change in America.
 Sociological analysis of cities is critical to creating social change (Duncan 1959)
For joint authors, use both last names: (Martin and Bailey 1988)
For institutional authorship, use minimum identification in the text and complete citation under
references: (U.S. Bureau of Census 1963, p. 117)
Separate a series of references with a semicolon: (Burgess 1968; Maxwell 1971)
If there is no date for a publication use n.d. in place of the year.
For unpublished materials, use “forthcoming” to indicate material scheduled for publication. For
dissertations and unpublished papers, cite the date: (Smith, forthcoming).
For works with three authors, list all last names in the first citation in the text; thereafter use “et al.”
For more than three authors, use “et al” throughout: (Carr, Smith, and Jones 1962), then (Carr et al.
1962)
Block quotations are presented in smaller type and are set off in a separate, indented paragraph.
They are not enclosed in quotation marks:
 As stated by Wright and Jacobs (1994):
The variation in men's earnings relative to their peers in the labor force was not a reliable
predictor of men's attrition. This finding is inconsistent with the prediction that declines in
earnings are responsible for male flight from feminizing occupations. (P. 531).
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Footnotes & Endnotes:
Endnotes are used to explain or amplify text, cite materials of limited availability, or append
information presented in a table or figure. Number endnotes and list at the end of your paper.
Increasingly people use endnotes rather than footnotes and use either one sparingly as they tend to
disrupt the flow of the text. Use footnotes and endnotes only when necessary. Footnotes appear at
the bottom of the page in which they originate.
Miscellaneous Style & Grammar Matters:
 Foreign words in your text should be italicized or underlined. Commonly used foreign words or
terms, however, should appear in regular type. Examples are per se, ad hoc, et al.
 When using an acronym, spell out the complete term the first time you use it and present the
acronym in parentheses:
First use: “The Current Population Survey (CPS) includes . . . .”
Later: “CPS data show that . . .”
 Equations in the text should be typed or printed. Use consecutive Arabic numerals in parentheses
at the right margin to identify important equations. Align all expressions and clearly mark compound
subscripts and superscripts.
 Do not use abbreviations such as etc., e.g., or i.e. in your text. You may use these abbreviations in
parenthetical information, however:
For example, some terms used in specific areas of sociology are not readily understood by the
general sociologist (e.g. cultural capital, etc.).
Cited References (reference list):
A bibliography includes all the works you read or scanned during the writing process. List references
in alphabetical order by authors' last names. References without an author name appear at the
beginning of the list. For two or more references by the same author, list them in order of the year of
publication. Use six hyphens and a period (------.) in place of the name when the authorship is the
same as in the preceding citation. To list two or more works by the same author from the same year,
distinguish them by adding letters (a, b, c, etc.) to the year and list in alphabetical order by the title.
Sample formats:
Books
Mason, Karen O. 1974. Women's Labor Force Participation and Fertility. Research
Triangle Park, NC: National Institutes of Health.
U.S. Bureau of the Census. 1960. Characteristics of Population. Vol. 1. Washington
D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Berlin, Gordon and Andrew Sum. 1988. Toward a More Perfect Union: Basic Skills,
Poor Families, and our Economic Future. New York: Ford Foundation.
Journal Articles:
Conger, Rand D. Forthcoming. “The Effects of Positive Feedback on Direction and
Amount of Verbalization in a Social Setting.” Sociological Perspectives.
Goodman, Leo A. 1947a. “Exploratory Latent Structure Analysis using both
Identifiable and Unidentifiable Models.” Biometrika 61: 215-31.
------. 1947b. “Systems in Qualitative Variables when some of the Variables are
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Unobservable, Part I – A Modified Latent Structure Approach.” American Journal
of Sociology 79: 1179-1259.
In most cases, journal pages are numbered consecutively within a volume year. Therefore you can
often omit the issue number. Only include the issue number or month only when it is need to
distinguish one issue from another within a volume year.
Articles from Collected Works/Chapters in Books:
Clausen, John A. 1972. “The Life Course of Individuals.” Pp. 457-514 in Aging and
Society, vol. 3, A Sociology of Age Stratification, edited by M. W. Riley, M. Johnson, and
A. Fotner. New York: Russell Sage.
Unpublished Manuscripts:
Osterman, Paul. 1990. “Welfare Participation in a Full Employment Economy: The Impact of
Family Structure and Neighborhood.” Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge,
MA. Unpublished manuscript.
Mechanics:
 Page Numbering: Although you count pages from the first page of the text, page numbering starts
to appear on the second page (as page 2). Carry the numbers system through endnotes and
references.
 Tables: Number consecutively throughout the text. Place tables at the end of the paper, but refer
to them in the text by number. Each table includes a descriptive title and headings for both columns
and rows.
 Figures and other Artwork: Number consecutively throughout the text. Place figures at the end of
the paper, but refer to them in the text by number. Each figure must have a descriptive title and
appropriate headings.
For more information . . . check out these additional references
Becker, Howard S. 1986. Writing for the Social Sciences. Chicago, IL: University
of Chicago Press.
The Sociology Writing Group. 1998. A Guide to Writing Sociology Papers. 4th ed.
New York: St. Martin's Press.
Krenzin, Joan and James Kanan. 1997. Handbook of the Mechanics of Paper, Thesis,
and Dissertation Preparation. 2nd ed. Washington D.C.: American Sociological
Association.
Don't forget to check your spelling!
Archives
Copyright © American Sociological Association
Page Last Updated: September 13, 2005
How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography
 WHAT IS AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY?
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 ANNOTATIONS VS. ABSTRACTS
 THE PROCESS
 CRITICALLY APPRAISING THE BOOK, ARTICLE, OR DOCUMENT
 CHOOSING THE CORRECT FORMAT FOR THE CITATIONS
 SAMPLE ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ENTRY FOR A JOURNAL ARTICLE
WHAT IS AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY?
An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents. Each citation is followed by a brief (usually
about 150 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of
the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.
ANNOTATIONS VS. ABSTRACTS
Abstracts are the purely descriptive summaries often found at the beginning of scholarly journal articles or in periodical indexes.
Annotations are descriptive and critical; they expose the author's point of view, clarity and appropriateness of expression, and
authority.
Return to the top
THE PROCESS
Creating an annotated bibliography calls for the application of a variety of intellectual skills: concise exposition, succinct
analysis, and informed library research.
First, locate and record citations to books, periodicals, and documents that may contain useful information and ideas on your
topic. Briefly examine and review the actual items. Then choose those works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic.
Cite the book, article, or document using the appropriate style.
Write a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the book or article. Include one or more sentences
that (a) evaluate the authority or background of the author, (b) comment on the intended audience, (c) compare or contrast this
work with another you have cited, or (d) explain how this work illuminates your bibliography topic.
CRITICALLY APPRAISING THE BOOK, ARTICLE, OR DOCUMENT
For guidance in critically appraising and analyzing the sources for your bibliography, see How to Critically Analyze Information
Sources. For information on the author's background and views, ask at the reference desk for help finding appropriate
biographical reference materials and book review sources.
Return to the top
CHOOSING THE CORRECT FORMAT FOR THE CITATIONS
CUL Publications 7 and 8, MLA Citation Style and APA Citation Style, are available at the Uris and Olin Reference desks.
Style manuals for some other formats are also kept in the reference collections. Check with your instructor to find out which
style is preferred for your class. Online citation guides for both Modern Language Association (MLA) and American
Psychological Association (APA) are available in the Library Gateway's Help section, under the "Research Strategy and
Process: Citing sources" link.
SAMPLE ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ENTRY FOR A JOURNAL ARTICLE
The following example uses the APA format for the journal citation:
Goldschneider, F. K., Waite, L. J., & Witsberger, C. (1986). Nonfamily living and
the erosion of traditional family orientations among young adults. American Sociological Review, 51, 541-554.
The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal
Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their
attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their
hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the
time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about
families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role
attitudes as a result of living.
This example uses the MLA format for the journal citation:
Waite, Linda J., Frances Kobrin Goldscheider, and Christina Witsberger. "Nonfamily Living and
the Erosion of Traditional Family Orientations Among Young Adults." American Sociological Review 51 (1986):
541-554.
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The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal
Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their
attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their
hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the
time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about
families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role
attitudes as a result of nonfamily living.